30 words
by kittenstanley
Summary: Short ficlets based off prompts. Charles/Raven Sean/Moira. R&R  Update: 30 more words!
1. 30 words

**Hello! Sorry I've been gone for a while, been very busy. This is my longest story yet! 12 pages! Aahh!**

**So my friend who proofread this said she liked the whole *****Charles-and-Raven-dodge-the-fact-that they-both-like-each-other-in more-than-a-friend-way-but-are-too-afraid-to-ruin-a-perfectly-good-friendship* thing. She wrote it exactly like that. **

**Rating: T for some references and content.**

**Parings: Sean/Moira, Raven/Charles, hinted Raven/Hank, Moira/Charles, and Raven/Erik.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own this movie or any of the songs that I used.**

**R&R**

…**.. **

**1. Comfort**

Sean walked downstairs. It was almost 3 a.m. but Sean didn't care. He made it to the kitchen, opened the fridge and pulled out a slice of German chocolate cake. He didn't care that the slice was reserved for Erik. Or that he's already had three slices. He had been pushed of a satellite earlier. He deserved it.

He deserved the ultimate comfort food.

**2. Laughter **

"So then, out of nowhere, Erik was wearing a dress!" Angel told the mutants. The mutants burst in to fits of laughter. Sean doubled over, Alex slapped his knee, Raven was gasping for air between her giggles, Darwin chuckled, Hank looked at feet but you could tell he was laughing his head off, and Angel clutched her stomach while remembering the night. It took them ten minutes to stop. And that's when they noticed Erik in the hallway looking in to their room.

"What was so funny?" He asked.

They laughed harder than the first time.

**3. Lust**

Lust.

That was the exact feeling Erik had for Raven.

She was hidden, hidden from the world.

She was a tiger, covered up.

She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

But Erik thought that the thing she most hated about herself was the thing that made her beautiful.

She hated the fact that she was blue. But Erik loved it, it was different, it was…

Extraordinary.

He wanted her so bad, but she belonged to someone else.

She didn't just belong to the nerdy scientist; she belonged to the blue-eyed telepath.

Erik had noticed the way she looked at Charles. The stolen glances and smirks from across the table, the longing look in her eyes every time he kissed her head, and how her eyes lit up every time he talked.

She belonged to Charles. And as long as she did, Erik would never have her.

So Erik would just have to find a way to change that.

**4. Black and white**

They were night and day.

They were light and dark.

They were black and white.

They were Charles and Erik.

Now, they are Professor X and Magneto.

**5. Mother**

Charles' mother never cared about him. She always cared about clothes, social status, and keeping Charles' stepfather happy, but never Charles.

When Charles told his mother about Raven, it was a month after she had snuck in to his house. His mother threw a fit, said that no way on earth would she keep a stray. That's when Raven shyly walked into the room in her blond form. His mother couldn't say no to her. But she was still a cold hearted woman, no matter how hard Charles tried to make her love him.

**6. Smile**

The little smiles between Sean and Moira suggested different things over time.

At first they suggested friendliness.

Then they suggested an inside joke or a funny memory of some sort.

Then they suggested something deeper.

It didn't take too long for Alex to find them kissing in a room in the back corner of the mansion.

They broke apart as soon as he entered the room. He stared at the couple for a minute before saying.

"'Bout time."

**7. Blush**.

Not long after Raven had arrived at the Xavier mansion, she created her blond form. She couldn't wait to show Charles, so she walked in to his room, still blue. She found him sitting on his bed reading a huge book

He looked up from his book. "Hello, Raven!"A smile grew across his face.

"I've created a look that your mom will love!" She smiled.

"Well, let's see it then." He set his book down and stared intently at Raven.

She shifted in to an adorable little girl with long blond hair, dark green eyes, and soft features.

"Raven, its- you're beautiful."

"Really?" a blush filled her new face.

"Yes." He blushed right back.

**8. Rain**

It rained for the first time since training started. Alex watched it through the window intently.

"It looks like you've never seen rain before." Hank said, amused by Alex.

"It's been a very long time." Alex chuckled.

**9. Mirror**

Raven avoided mirrors. They either showed a person she wasn't or a person she hated.

She longed for the day that she could just look in to a mirror and smile.

**10. Snow**

Snow filled the grounds of the Xavier mansion. Raven and Sean were making a snowman when a random snowball hit Raven on the side of her face. She jumped from icy snow running down her face and then looked around to see who threw it. She saw Charles giggling like an idiot and pointing at her.

"…Your face…" He managed to say through fits of laughter.

"Oh, it's on Xavier." She scooped up a snowball and started to chase him. She finally hit him when they were half way around the mansion. He lost his balance and fell to his knees.

"Charles!" She rushed toward him. "Are you ok?" She was trying to help him up.

"Yeah, just lost my balance." He used one hand to push up from the ground and another was being pulled by Raven.

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Perfectly fine." He started to giggle, dropped a clump of snow on her head and slowly started to back up.

"Hey!" she yelled stomping towards him.

"Sorry!" He held up his hands and started to back away even faster.

"Not so fast!" She yelled running in to him.

"_Oof_!" He yelled as he lay under a smiling Raven.

"I win." She sing-songed and leaned closer to his mouth.

"GIVE IT BACK!" They quickly broke away when they heard a gruff voice. The both scrambled to get up and follow the angry voice. It turned out to be Erik, who was chasing Sean around the small courtyard. Raven couldn't figure out why until Charles pointed at the snowman that she and Sean were working on earlier.

It was wearing Erik's turtleneck.

**11. Beach**

Moira often thought of a beach. It took her months to remember it. At first she remembered trees, then sunlight, then a kiss. But it took her sometime to remember the beach and to remember the gun and to remember the look on Charles' face when the bullet hit his spine.

And she will never forget it.

**12. Hurt**

It hurt Erik to say goodbye. Charles was his friend, he and Alex had mutual respect, Sean was like a son to him, and Hank.

He had nothing nice to say about Hank.

Hank wanted to hide Raven from the world.

Hank wanted to hide himself.

And that was unacceptable.

**13. Wedding**

When they were kids, Charles and Raven's favorite game was 'wedding'. Raven would wear a white trench coat from Mrs. Xavier's closet and Charles would wear his nicest suit. They would go to the courtyard and dance for hours, pretending as if they had just gotten married. They played it for years until one night.

They were dancing to a song that Charles was projecting through their heads.

_Stars shining bright above you…_

Raven's head was placed in the crook of Charles' head.

_Sweet breezes seem to whisper I love you…_

"Raven?"

"Yes?" She kept her head in place.

"Are we too old for this?"

_Birds singing in the sycamore tree…_

Raven didn't want to move, she knew that if she did, they would never be that close again.

_Dream a little dream of me…_

She winced, moving her head away.

"Yes." She whispered. 

It was one of the most painful moments of her life.

**14. Lollipop**

Raven loved lollipops. She ate them day and night. Her favorite flavor was cherry, and she never left home without them.

"Those will rot your teeth." Hank told her one day.

She took the lollipop out of her mouth. "I don't care." She smiled and left the room to find Charles. She found him reading a book in his room, a thing he normally did.

"Would you still love me with rotten teeth?" she fiddled with the lollipop in her hand.

He looked up from his book. "Of course." He paused. "Why?"

She looked down at the lollipop. "Hank said my teeth will rot if I keep eating these."

He set his book down and walked towards her. "You have nothing to worry about." He kissed her head. "I will love you no matter how rotten your teeth are." He gave a small chuckle.

A huge smile formed on her face.

**15. Death**

Death seemed to follow Erik everywhere he went. He just wanted it to stop. But he knew it never would.

**16. Groovy**

Raven hated the word groovy. Groovy was Charles' favorite word. He would say it to describe everything, and Raven meant everything.

"It's a groovy mutation."

"So groovy!"

"Very groovy place, sweetheart."

"Groovy turtleneck, Erik, where do I get one?"

Raven had hit her final straw; she was going to lose it.

"It's very groo-"

"If you say groovy one more time-"

"You'll what?"

"Read my mind."

Charles put two fingers to his temple and his eyes widened in horror. He dropped to his knees and begged: "Please don't! I'll never say that word again!"

"Good." She smiled and skipped out of the room.

**17. Fire Department**

Sean always wanted to be a fireman. This came up in one of his and Moira's random conversations in their favorite room.

"So what did you want to be when you were a kid?" Sean asked Moira. They were sitting on a little couch with Moira leaning against the arm of the couch and her legs draped over Sean's lap.

"I wanted to be a spy," She smiled. "I got pretty close to it."

"Good answer, Mo." He smiled right back.

"What about you?"

"I always wanted to be a fireman." He looked down at her. "I got sort of close; the fire department came to my house a lot."

**18. Wonderland**

Raven loved _Alice in Wonderland; _she used to have Charles read it to her every night. She felt like she was Alice; sane in a world of the insane. But she always thought that was crazy, she would not be the only sane one.

Charles would be one, too.

**19. Pirate**

They were all having dinner, laughing and talking about the day.

"Ok!" Sean said. "Pirates or ninjas?"

"Ninjas." Raven said.

"Pirates!" Charles said.

"Pirates." Hank said softly.

"Ninjas, all the way!" Alex said.

"Ninjas." Erik scoffed.

"Ninjas," Moira smiled. "What about You?"

"Seriously, Mo?" He looked hurt."Ninjas!"

The room went silent.

"Did you just call her Mo?" Raven asked.

**20. Bunny**

Sean was wandering the grounds after a long day of training when he saw something out of the ordinary. It was a little bunny, lying by the bushes. He took a closer look see that it was sleeping, so he scooped it up and headed towards the mansion. He got closer and saw Moira and Raven talking.

"Hey, Mo!" He held up the bunny, which was now wide awake. "Can I keep it?"

Moira opened her mouth to say something, but before she could Raven ran toward Sean and the bunny.

"It's so cute!"

**21. Music**

Raven and Charles loved music. So late at night, when everyone was asleep, they would sneak in to a room on the top floor and play their favorite new record: _Please, Please Me _by The Beatles.

"Put it on!" Raven whispered.

"No one can hear us, you don't have to whisper-"

"Just do it!"

Charles started the record. The both started dancing and singing along.

"_Well she was just seventeen,_" Raven sang and clapped to the beat.

"_You know what I mean,_" Charles joined in.

"You look like an idiot." Raven laughed.

Charles scoffed. "This is called dancing, not like you would know."

She playfully hit his arm and gave him a swift kiss on the lips.

The mood quickly changed. Charles looked flustered. "Raven, you promised we wouldn't do that here."

"We almost got caught, once." She rolled her eyes.

"By your boyfriend!"

"He's not my boyfriend!" She said angrily.

There was a moment of silence between the two.

"We used to be best friends!" He put his hand on his forehead. "What happened to us, Raven?"

"We fell in love," She gave a weak smile. "A long time ago." She sat down in a chair by the record player.

"I remember."

"Why can't we just go back to being us?" Raven was already crying. "I missed the days when I could kiss you and not worry about being caught, when I could hold your hand in public, and when we could just be," She paused. "Us."

He kneeled in front of her chair. "There, there. There is nothing to cry about. We will never stop being us." He took her hand. "Look, I'm holding your hand right now." He gave her a quick kiss. "And I don't care if anyone catches us."

She smiled and stood up. She led him to the middle of the room, rested her head on his shoulder, and started to dance to the music.

_Listen,_

_Do you want to know a secret?_

_Do you promise not to tell?_

_Closer,_

_Let me whisper in your ear,_

_Say the words you long to hear,_

_I'm in love with you._

**22. Nap**

"I need a nap." Moira groaned.

"May I join you?" Sean winked.

Moira rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Men."

Twenty minutes later Alex found them kissing on the couch.

**23. Flowers**

When Raven and Charles were kids, they liked to hang out in the garden, which was filled with flowers. Raven loved the irises. When Charles asked her why, she would say:

"Because they're different." She would leave it alone at that. But her heart longed to say: _like me._

**24. Games**

"Don't play these games with me, Moira." Sean looked disgusted. "First you tell me that you love me and next you're making googly-eyes at the professor, and now I hear that you're sleeping with him!"

"Sean, I-"

"Don't, just don't, Moira!"

"Sean, please-"

"Please, Mo, let's just stop kidding ourselves." The venom of his words cut her like a knife. He stormed out the room, slamming the door behind him.

"Sean, wait!" She yelled after him, but it was too late.

Moira slowly sat down on their couch, trying to process what just happened. She just wished she could forget the look on his face and the tears in his eyes.

And soon she would.

**25. Violin**

Charles used to be a skilled violin player. Raven loved to listen to him play. But when he started college, he was too busy studying and partying to play anymore. Then one day he tried to play it again and he forgot how. She missed the sound of the violin filling the halls.

**26. Cheating**

_It isn't cheating. _Raven thought. _It doesn't count if there's nothing going on._

"There is nothing going on," she muttered to herself. "Just flirting, nothing more." She started to pace her floor. "I love Charles, Hank is just a flirtation, and Erik is just very friendly"

She couldn't keep lying to herself like that, but she carried on.

**27. Tears**

Tears ran down Raven's face. Hank asked her if anything was wrong. She lied, said everything was fine. But it wasn't, she had just seen her best friend, the man she loved, _with_ Moira MacTaggart. He didn't even notice her watching them. The tears kept coming.

"Are you sure you're fine?"

She couldn't talk to him. So she got up and went to find the only person other than Charles that she could talk to.

She went to go find Sean, and tell him everything.

**28. Ice cream**

Sean and Moira loved to have late night conversations.

"So, wait, you haven't had ice cream in three years?" Sean was perplexed by this fact. Well he was perplexed as he could be after drinking three bottles of wine with Moira.

"Nope." Moira giggled.

"Jeez, Mo, we gotta get you some ice cream!"

So to solve the problem, Sean and Moira ran through the halls and yelled:

"PROFESSOR! PROFESSOR! WHERE DO YOU KEEP THE ICE CREAM!"

They were stopped by the professor on the fourth floor.

_The fridge!_ He projected.

"THANK YOU!" They both yelled and giggled.

**29. Baby**

Sean liked to call Moira a lot of pet names. Like:

"Sweetheart."

"Darling."

"Baby."

"Mo."

"Beautiful."

"Super spy."

Moira only called Sean two things:

"Sean."

And.

"Ginger."

**30. Kiss**

Raven's first kiss happened many years ago in her room, while she and a boy where playing monopoly.

"Raven?" Charles asked one day. He had just turned sixteen and she had been fourteen for a few months.

"Yes, Charles?"

"We are best friends, right?"

"Of course." She smiled.

"What if we were," He let out a nervous chuckle. "M-m-more than friends?"

Raven smiled. "Like friends for life?"

"N-no more than that."

She thought for a minute, then her eyes widened as she realized what he meant. "Oh."

"Yeah."

She starred at him for a second, eyes locked with his.

"You're probably going to turn me down now, aren't you?"

She leaned in and kissed him.

"Does that answer your question?" She laughed.


	2. 30 more words!

**So, I decided to continue, yep.**

**I'm also changing the main characters to Sean & Moira.**

**This took me over a week to write!**

**Thanks to my amazing Beta, On the wings of ravens! **

…**..**

**1. Water**

Raven glanced at her clock:

_2:00 A.M. _

She smiled and jumped out of bed, fully clothed. She had been waiting all day to listen to the new Beatles record with Charles. She quickly ran out of her room and quietly closed the door.

Sean looked over at his clock.

_2:00 A.M. _

He stood up from where he was sitting on the edge of his bed. He and Moira were going to meet for one of their late night talks. He glanced at the clock again and ran out of his room.

Raven raced down the hall, she had two floors to go before her destination. She kept going on her path, until she ran into Sean. He fell over with a _thud._

"Ow!"He said pulling himself off the ground.

"Oh! Sean I am so sorry!"

"I'm fine."

"I didn't see you and-" She paused. "Wait what are you doing up?"

He scrambled to create an answer. "Water!" He said. "I was getting a glass of water." He smiled triumphantly then his expression changed to a more quizzical one. "Wait, what are you doing up?"

"S-same as you!" she nervously giggled then went along on her path. Sean stared at her for a minute, and then went along on his path.

Raven reached the back room. She knocked on the door and it swung open.

"Hello, sweetheart." Charles smirked, took Raven's hand and led her into the room.

Sean smoothed his hair and knocked on Moira's door. She opened it with a smile.

"Hello, Sean."

"Hey, beautiful."

She kissed him and led him in to her room, locking the door behind her.

**2. Mind**

"Raven, why are you in such a bad mood?" Charles was very annoyed, Raven had been huffing and stomping the whole day.

"I don't know, Charles, why don't you just read my mind!" She said in a sarcastic tone. He ignored her tone and put his fingers to his forehead. He got fragments:

_You're not alone Moira-_

_You're going to get through this-_

_Charles, I need-_

Then he saw the kiss.

"Oh, Raven. I'm so sorry."

"Don't."

"Raven, it was just a ki-"

"I saw the rest too." Tears filled her eyes.

"I didn't mean to, darling, it just happened!"

"Save it." She turned towards the door then looked over her shoulder and said: "And while you're at it," She narrowed her eyes. "Shove it." And with that she stormed out.

**3. Cake**

"Bon appetite!" Raven said putting the last of the frosting on the cake.

"What kind of cake is it?" Sean's eyes widened.

"German chocolate."

Sean looked like he would explode with excitement.

**4. Umbrella**

It rained a lot in Oxford. On the worst days Charles and Raven used to huddle under their umbrella and wait for the rain to stop. Raven missed that.

**5. Tree**

Sean loved to climb the tallest tree on the grounds. He kept trying to get people to come up there with him, but nobody would. Until one day:

Sean loved the view, but it didn't make him feel better. Moira had betrayed him, he loved her and she just threw it away. The worst part is that she hurt Raven too. He and Raven were close, she was like his sister. He couldn't stop thinking about it. He wanted get out of that tree- no.

He needed to get out of that tree. That's when he saw Raven.

"Sean! Hide me!" She said in a hushed tone.

"Coming!" He climbed down, grabbed her hand, and helped her up the tree.

"Thank you so much." She whispered. "Now be quiet!" She pointed to the ground. Sean looked down to see the professor.

"Raven!" Charles looked around. "I'm so sorry! Raven!" He kept walking.

"I'm guessing you told him?"

"He figured it out." She sniffled

Sean looked at his feet. "I know how you feel."

"Did your girlfriend back home cheat on you?"

"Well, no." He looked at her. "Moira and I were together."

"Oh, Sean, I'm so sorry." She patted his shoulder. "How long have you guys been broken-up?"

"About twenty minutes."

"Oh my god, Sean! It's all my fault! I'm the one that told you and-"

"Raven, it's not your fault. Moira was the one that messed up, not you."

They were silent for a minute.

"The view is pretty amazing from here." She smiled.

"Sure is."

**6. Proud**

"Have you ever heard that thing that Raven says all the time?" Sean asked Moira on their favorite couch.

"What thing?"

"Mutant and proud." He said. "I like it, has a nice ring to it."

"Well, it doesn't really apply to me."

"Oh."

"You should probably get some sleep, Sean."

"You're probably right, Mo."

**7. Magnetic**

"Oh look it's the magnetic Nazi hunter." Raven stormed past Erik, with Charles following her.

"What's gotten in to her?" Erik asked Charles.

"Don't ask." Charles said with obvious tears in his eyes. "Raven!" He ran after her.

**8. Whisper**

"Nice dress." Sean whispered in to Moira's ear.

"Sean!" She angrily whispered. "Not here."

"What? Is the dinner table a bad place to flirt?"

**9. Importance**

"Mo, this is very important." Sean stared at her intently.

"Yes?"

"Don't let Alex use my bathroom."

**10. Kids**

When Sean was a kid he wanted to be a fireman.

When Alex was a kid he wanted to be a cop.

When Hank was a kid he wanted to be normal.

**11. Shower**

Sean knocked on the bathroom door. "Anyone in there?"

"Just me." Moira said.

"Oh! Hey, Mo, are you going to be much longer? I really have to pee and there are no other bathrooms on this floor."

"Uh, I'm about to take a shower."

"So?"

**12. Christmas**

"Hey, Mo?" Sean asked to Moira on their favorite couch.

"Yes?"

"What do you want for Christmas?"

"I already have what I wanted." She kissed him on the cheek.

**13. Always**

"So what are we going to listen to tonight?" Raven asked. She and Charles were going to listen to a new record after the whole 'boyfriend' fiasco that happened the night before.

"It's a surprise!" He put the record in player then music filled the air.

_It's my party, and I'll cry if I want to._

"I love this song!"

"I knew you would."

"This is why I love you."

"My great taste in music?"

"No, silly." She laughed. "You always know what I'm thinking without having to read my mind."

"Always." He smiled. He knew it was a lie, Raven had asked him to never read her mind, but he would go ahead without permission whenever he wanted to. It had become a very bad habit.

One that she would soon find out about.

_You would cry too if it happened to you._

**14. Clothes**

Dinner at the Xavier Mansion was never dull.

"Hey, Erik." Sean asked. "Why do you wear turtlenecks all the time?"

Erik stood up from his seat and walked out of the room.

"Okay. Charles why do you always wear that cardigan?"

**15. Glass**

Charles was going to his room when he saw something odd in Moira's room.

_**Moira?**_

_**Yes, Charles?**_

_**Did you know there's a broken window in your room?**_

_**Yes.**_

_**Do you know how it got there?**_

_**Uh, no idea.**_

Charles could tell that she was lying, but he carried on.

**16. Beard**

"God, Charles! Stop following me!" Raven was clearly annoyed by Charles.

"Just let me explain!"

"Stop! Or I'll tell everybody about '59."

"You wouldn't."

"What happened in '59?" Asked an eavesdropping Sean.

"It was the year that-"

"No!"

"Charles tried to grow a beard!"

**17. Alcohol**

Raven was quietly reading her book in the foyer when Alex and Sean came in with a big box.

'_This can't be good.' _ She thought.

"We hit the jackpot!" Sean said, setting the box down.

"What's in the box?" Raven said cautiously.

Alex reached inside the box and pulled out a beer. "Liquor." He flashed a smile.

"You in?" Sean asked.

"Beer me."

_A few hours later._

"I think we should get you Moira together." She slurred.

"We already are!" Sean slurred back,

"Did you hear that Alex?" Raven giggled and looked at Alex, who was passed out on the couch.

Someone knocked on the door.

"Shoot!" Raven whispered. "Quick, Sean, hide it."

Sean threw a sheet over the box while Raven got up to answer the door.

"Hello, Raven." Charles said with a grin.

"Hey, Charlie!" She tried her best not to slur.

Charles looked around the room and gave a little wave to Sean. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the box.

"You guys have been drinking!"

"Maybe." Sean said backing away and accidently breaking a beer bottle.

**18. Time**

It was time to tell Sean everything. Maybe he would understand that the mistake she made was just a stupid mistake. And that the mistake they made would be a good thing. So Moira braced herself and walked in to the little back room. She was greeted with:

"I know."

"Know what?" She lied.

"Don't play these games with me Moira."

**19. Sleep**

Sean was awoken in his bed by giggling coming from the next room. He groaned and went to complain.

He knocked on the door twice before opening. The second the doorknob clicked, Sean heard a loud _thud_. He saw Raven partially covered in a sheet. He quickly averted his eyes.

"Oh, sorry Raven didn't know you were in here. Could you do a favor and be quiet?" He started to close the door then realized. "This is Erik's room. Why are you in Erik's room?" She opened her mouth to say something but quickly closed it, a sign that she had no explanation. Sean made his way to the other side of Erik's bed.

"Hey, man." Erik said, covered only in the little bit of blanket. Sean walked away from him and stopped in front of Raven.

"Not cool, Raven. You shouldn't sleep with Erik to get back at him, it doesn't work that way. Now keep it down, I need to sleep." He had a look of disgust on his face. "Goodnight." He stormed out.

"Sean?" Raven whimpered, but it was too late, the door had slammed and he was gone.

Raven lost a friend that night.

**20. Car**

"Raven, where is my car?" Charles asked.

"Well Sean told me he never learned how to drive…"

"And?"

"So, I decided to teach him."

"I don't like where this is going."

"And he was doing well until we got to the lake."

"Oh no."

"So, long story short, if you want your car, Erik is going to have to fish it out of the bottom of the lake."

**21. Silver**

"Erik, can you set-" Charles trailed off when he saw the silverware fly through the air and set itself on the table.

"You're welcome." Erik said and then left the room.

**22. Bed**

After a long day of helping the mutants train, Moira had finally made it to her room. She was ready to just fall in to bed and sleep for hours. But when she opened the door she found that her bed was not empty.

"Hello, gorgeous." Sean said, attempting to lie seductively on her bed.

"Is this your best seduction technique?" She smirked.

"Is it working?"

She entered the room and locked the door behind her.

**23. Books**

Books. Charles loved books. When he was young, reading made up for lost social interaction. When Raven entered his life, reading became something he taught. Raven lived on the streets her whole life with no school, no family, and no love. So, when Charles asked her what the headline of that day's newspaper said, she struggled for minutes.

"Raven, do you not know how to read?"

She shook her head. "No."

"Well then I'll just have to teach you!"

It took a year for Raven to learn, but it was worth it. By the time she was eleven her favorite book was the hobbit. She loved the adventures and most importantly, she loved the riddles. She would challenge Charles with them every chance she got. He had heard them many times, but he acted like they were brand new whenever she would ask them.

"_An eye in a blue face, Saw an eye in a green face 'That eye is like to this eye' Said the first eye, 'But in low place, Not in high place." _She would recite.

"Hmm." He would think for a minute. "Sun on daises in a field?

Her eyes would light up. "Correct!"

But as the years went on, Charles grew tired of her constant quoting.

One night, they were walking back to their Oxford apartment. They hadn't really said anything since they left the pub. So, Raven attempted to break the silence.

"_It cannot be seen-_"

"The dark!" He yelled, clearly annoyed.

"Excuse me?" She stopped.

"Raven, I am tired of you always asking me the same riddles. Every day for the past fifteen years it's been the same questions and the same answers!"

"I'm sorry if I've been boring you." She said bitterly.

Charles' face softened. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. Why don't we go back to the flat and read it again?" He smirked.

"Perfect."

**24. Alone**

Alex was alone for most of his life.

Alone, in the sense that no one was like him, that he was a freak.

Alone, in the sense that he was in solitary confinement, cut off from the world.

It was nice to not be alone anymore.

**25. Trust **

"Sean, what if somebody sees us?" Moira was inches away from his mouth.

"Nobody will see us, trust me."

"I trust you." She whispered, then kissed him.

**26. Party**

"Ooh, what is this?" Sean asked Raven, he had a record in his hands.

"A record."

"Thank you, captain obvious." Alex snorted.

"It's _It's My Party _by Lesley Gore." She sighed. "And I'm very tired of it."

"Aw, I've never heard it!" Sean whined.

"Yeah, Raven, he's never heard it." He teased.

"Fine." She huffed and took the record from Sean's hands. "Here you go." She put the record on.

_It's my party._

"I'm leaving, you two have fun." Raven said.

"Hush, woman!" Sean said, attempting to listen to the music.

"Bye." She whispered and walked out.

_You would cry too if it happened to you._

Sean started to awkwardly dance.

"Alright, this is lame." Alex said then left.

…

Moira heard music coming from down the hall, so she decided to investigate it. She reached the room where the music was coming from to see Sean dancing all by himself.

_Nobody knows where my Johnny has gone,_

"Sean? What are you doing?"

"Oh, hey, Mo! I'm just dancing, care to join me?"

She rolled her eyes as he held out his hand. She took it and started to dance.

_Oh, it's my party and I'll cry if I want to._

**27. Wizard**

The boys were playing darts one day.

"No!" Sean said as his dart landed outside the board.

"Let me show you how it's done." Alex said and set the board up again. He threw a dart, Sean watched as it flew directly into the middle. "Boom."

"How did you do that?" Sean gasped then said in very hushed tone. "Are you a wizard?"

**28. Phone**

In the seven months Moira has been back at the C.I.A., she remembered everything from the mansion to the day Charles last kissed her. It had been a long day and all she wanted to was fall fast asleep, but as soon as she got home she heard a familiar sound.

_Ring Ring._

She groaned and picked up the phone.

"Hello, Moira MacTaggart speaking."

"Uh, hello this is, uh-" A familiar voice said, one that Moira had longed to hear.

"Sean?"

"Moira, you remember?"

"Yes, it took me a while."

"The professor said you might," Sean paused. "He also told me everything else."

"Everything?"

"Uh, yeah, when do you need me to come?"

Moira felt a sharp pain. "Uh, how about, right now." She winced.

"Right now? Oh, coming! I'll be there in a couple hours, don't worry."

"Okay," She winced again. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

**29. Weakness**

"So, German chocolate cake is your favorite?" Moira asked Sean.

"It's my weakness." He said, shoving another piece of cake in to his mouth.

"I'll make note of that." She smiled.

**30. Angel**

Alex heard a small crash outside his window. He glanced over at his clock.

_3 A.M._

"This better be good." He muttered and got out of bed. A light tap came from his window. He looked out to seen none other than-

"Angel?" Alex looked at the girl outside his window. Her wings were silently flapping and her eyes were full of sadness. He opened his window. "What are you doing here?"

"Can I come in?"

"Do you know what will happen if you get caught? Or if we get caught? You are practically leading Shaw to us!" He whispered.

"Shaw doesn't know where I am, sweetheart." She chuckled.

"Fine, just get in before someone sees you!" He pulled her in through the window and closed it quickly.

"Thanks, daddy-o." She quickly dusted off her skirt and pulled her wings in.

"What are you doing here?"

She looked at her feet. "Shaw isn't as _nice _as he seems." She pulled her jacket off to reveal a large purple bruise.

"What did he do to you?" He stared at her arm.

"Don't worry; he didn't do any more than hit me." She gave a little chuckle, but Alex could tell she was hurt. "I bet you have some questions."

"Uh, yeah. How about: Does Shaw know you're here? How did you know where were?"

"First of all, Shaw thinks I'm asleep. And Janos promised to make up a fake story if he woke up before I got back." She smiled. "And second, Raven told me all about how she grew up in huge mansion in Westchester, New York, overlooking a beautiful lake. It wasn't really that hard to find."

Alex chuckled. "Remind me to tell Raven to keep her mouth shut." He paused. "Why are you here?"

"For one reason, daddy-o." She strutted up to him.

"And what would that be?"

She stood up on her toes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. After what seemed like an hour to Alex, he pulled away.

"That's a good reason." He smiled.

"I've been wanting to do that for a while, now." She grinned. "Oh, crap, what time is it?"

Alex looked at his clock. "About four in the morning."

She gave him a quick kiss. "I have to go." She unfurled her wings and opened the window.

"Goodbye, Angel."

"Goodbye, Havok." She climbed out the window and flew away.

**TBC**

…**.**

**Reviews are love!**

**KittenStanley**


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